Aeronautical toy



Aug. 18, 1936. J NQRTHROP v 2,051,151

AERONAUTICAL TOY Filed J l 16, 1955 INVENTOR,

/ JOHN K. NORTH/POP. BY

Patented Aug. 18, 1936 V UNITED STATES PATENTOFFICE AERONAUTICAL TOY John K.'Northrop, Los Angeles, Calif., assignor to Northill Co. Inc., Los Angeles, Calif., a cornotation of California Application July 16, 1935, Serial No. 31,601 V 4 Claims. (01. 46-83) My invention relates to an aeronautical toy, rise into the air leaving the drivin means b and more particularly to a miniature helicopter hind, and climb until such time as the speed of and means for causing the device to rise in the r tati n fails t sus a t p p l any air. whereupon the propeller falls and returns to the 5 Among the objects of my invention are: To gr und. I have termed such propeller for the 5 provide an aeronautical toy capable of a rising purpose of this application a helicopter although flight; to provide such a toy together with means n a mpt is made r the propeller to y y for increasing the time of. descent; to rovide a p w r p a the p w r being pu rotational miniature helicopter equipped with a parachute; force Stored n he pr pell r by an initial rotato provide such a helicopter wherein a parachute tionel mpu s is released at or near the apex of its flight; to My d v w v r, f s m the prior art provide a toy helicopter designed on modern n a I have provided a f ea y Op aeronautical principles; to'provide a toy helig v n r whi h may b d ust d to r leas a co-pter carrying a parachute which is released Parachute from the propeller assembly adjacent at a predetermined point in its flight by th the apex of its flight but preferably shortly after 15 tion of centrifugal force; to provide a toy helihe pr p ller has started .to descend. .In this copter with parachute releasing means under W y, the descent is d d and a longer t Of the control of a governor operated by the speed fl t can be obteinedof rotation of the helicopter; to provide, in a F e, I h e designed y pte helicopter carrying a releasable parachute, means with all due regard to modern aeronautical p 20 for damping rotation of the propeller thereof e S that not y can mll p w be upon release of the parachute; to provide a heli- Stored in the rotor, but @150 maximum l ud copter and driving means cooperating to control a be Obtained during the release of that D w a centrifugal governor before release from the To this end, the P p e blades a p d 5 driving means; to provide a simple and efiicient with contours which have been found to be the aeronautical toy; and to provide an improved most efficient for climbi g d errim has b impulse driven helicopter. provided having minimum airiresistance, for My invention possesses numerous other objects p w Storage I and features of, advantage, some of which, to- Other broad aspec s y invention y be gether'with the foregoing, will be set forth in the more readily und rs b direct reference to 30 following description of specific apparatus em-, h d w A u r disc, p ly f a bodying and utilizing my novel method. It is light s ong mat rial, Such as one of the aero-. therefore to be understood that my method is helltiealehlmillllm l is ra y Cut ut to applicable to other apparatus; and that I do not P d P yf D QP blades i limit myself, in any way, to the apparatus of the connected tips, th bled-e5 b n g ven at the 35 present application, asImay adopt various other same ime a calculated propeller curvature as apparatus embodiments, utilizing the method, shown in the sectional views in the drawing. The

Within the scope of the appended claims. cuts preferably donotextend to the axis of the Referring to the drawing: disc but a central portion is left which is dished 40 Figure l is a longitudinal view in elevation of. downwardly to P ov de a central cup I also 4 0 a preferred embodiment of my invention. p e to tu n he p p e y o he d sc toiorm Figure 2 is a top plan view of the device illusa. dished edge 3 for .S ,*p l' l Weight, trated in Figure 1. j and stability, this edge also re-enforcing the pro- Figure 3 is a side view in elevation of my in- D r blade ps against d g shocks. vention after release of the parachute. A cover 4, preferably cup-shaped, is provided, 45 Figure 4 is a sectional view taken as indicated h v the S e general dia e a h 119 by the line 4-4 in Figure 2. and is preferably hinged to the propeller body Figure 5 is a sectional view taken as indicated by means of a pi 5 pa h h h1 5) Wh c by the line 5- -5 in Figure 2. c are turned to form a pinbearing, and a cup lug Figure 6, is a perspective detail view partly in 1 Which is preferably Stamped integral With the 50 section of the governor arm mounting. disc and turned to receive thev pin 5. The pin 5 In general, my present invention resembles is then passed through all'threelugs, and in case prior apparatus wherein a propeller is rotated by the pin is a cotter key, the ends bend outwardly; hand or otherwise until suflicient speed of rotaor in case of a solid pin, the end is buried to 5 tion is obtained for the rotor to develop lift and maintain the pin in place.

' 55 H p a is maintained on the bearingfpinzl by means of Directly opposite the hinge a. locking lip 8 is provided on the edge of the cover, and a governor bar 9 extending downwardly,.passes through a 'slot H1 in a governor lug l and is maintained thereinby punch below the propeller and by' 1 a locking lug I2 above the propeller, the locking Wardly. .A hinge springflld is provided, which r at right angles to lug l2 being so situated that it will engage the locking lip 8- on thecover andmaintain the cover closed when the lower end of the governor bar is subjected'to a force tending to move it outwill open the cover by breakingthe engagement of thelocking lug J2 and the locking lip t when' no force is applied to the lower. end of the governor bar. 7 Y r The propeller is the diameter the hingeand governor, with the pair of driving having shroud lines and'from thence to a 'willbe away from the in Figure 3'; "Iheparachuteis designed of such f3 lip 8' engaged.- The lips 5 extending downwardly, preferably formed in theinitial stamping. V

Iiprovide the helicopter with a parachutelii swivel l9 which is attached to some pointon the inner wall of the chamber ZB-formed by the-cover and the cup, but preferably tothe cover, so that when the parachute'is filled and the cover opened, the'suspension point axis of the rotor, asshown material, preferably light parachute silk, that it may be folded and stowed within chamberZO in such a manner that'the cover may be closed thereupon andthe locking lugl2 and the locking of'the device is then ready for flight. i

of driving mechanism is a the purpose and to attain even" greater altitude thancanbe obtained byhand. However; as one of the main'purposes or the invention is to create a starting 7 platform The starting 60 1 V I the side 'ple. After therotor 'be used by all, the hand operatedaccelerator is preferable.

j i This comprises, therefore, a handle 20 provided with-an axial'bearing-pin 21 upon which rotates can 8 pin head 21.

topto receive 7 also provided with driving pins 28' whichgengage notches 29 in the driving lugs l5 which extend of the driving; platform 22; i is restrained by the side of the hinge-spring. '7 i The operation of the device-is relatively simhas been placed upon'the driving platform andpins 28 engaged in the rotor notches, the platform is rotated so-that the string 24 is wound inthe-groove 23;' The handle a the greater will rotor, and when 'of the device has a x H when' it Will'fStSJ'ttO fall. also provided, on a diameter passingthrough these a-lsobeings" ernor arm is pulled IT converging to. a, point l8" trifugal response of rotor'or helicopter portion axis. so that as soon as the sustained by the parachute platform is preferably dished on I thecontouriof the cup? and is 2,051,151 V H V I 20' is then grasped firmly in ;the weaker hand and the knob 22 taken in the. stronger hand. With the handle 20 maintained in substantially a vertical position, the handle 26 is given a strong sharp pull to unwind the string and rotate the starting platform together'with the rotor to as high a speed as possible withinthe limits of the string length. The higher the speed obtained and the less the time taken to develop this speed, be the energy stored in the gravitational efiect and inertia been overcome, the entire heli copter-will rise rapidly into the air until the speed of rotation is insufficient to sustain level flight,

During the rotation o ernor' arm 9 is being subjected to centrifugal force developed by that rotation and. therefore when the rotor leaves the platform and the govoutfree of the platform, this centrifugal force is 7 nor barto keep the cover securely locked in place asthe centrifugal force developstends to move the lower end of the d When the'speed -of rotation of the rotor'drops-to such apoint where this centrifugal force is in sufiicient to maintain the cover lock against the action of the hinge springQthe cover willopen and the parachute: is freefto'leave the cavity chamberZO.

. 1- nthe platform, the gov V sufficient to cause the govergovernor arm outwardly; V,

However, I desire to so coordinate the. cen-' the governor and the urge of the hinge spring I 4 so that the-cover will not 7 open until the speed of rotation of the rotor has dropped below the point where the rotor may still rise, but to open after therotorhas reached the apex of its flight and has started to drop.

The downward motion aidsthe parachute to open, and clear the rotor.

I have found that when this adjustment of the governor is made, the parachute opens quickly andthere is no danger of the shroud lines fouling the propellerblades. Howeven'as there re mains in the rotor a considerable amount .of energy and the rotor will still be spinning even after the parachute isopen, parachute-to the rotor away from the rotational tation and tovarious other factors inherent in 'theiindividual design of a particular model I have found; however, that such an adjustment weight of the rotor is the rotor will wobble weight or the ovr I prefer to attach the s is:=easy for any one skilled in-the art to obtain" and when once obtained, it is not so critical but what: the device can be made in duction without 'further research or adjustment of the individualmachines,

quantity pro- While I have described my invention in a particularprefe'rred embodiment, I do not wish to V be limited to any particular form of either the driving mechanism nor the governor, variations of which structures skilled in the art. For example, there are many ways inhingingithe governor arm to the rotor. It is also not necessary for the governor arm to extend downwardly. It may be a spring-con will be apparent to those.

trolled weight which will move radially and outwardly to lock the cover and radially and inwardly to unlock it. It is also possible to perforate the bottom of the cup and eliminate the hinge spring entirely, relying on air pressure to open the cover and push out the parachute.

I also may desire to provide a lug opposite the governor arm of substantially the same size and shape in order to balance the rotor and provide recesses in the driving platform to receive both the governor arm and the lug, thereby rotating the propeller without additional means. The recess walls will prevent the governor arm from moving to unlock the cover, and will center the rotor on the platform.

The main feature of my invention, therefore, is the use of a centrifugal governor operable during flight to release the parachute at a predetermined point and which can be mechanically or physically locked during the application of power to the rotor to cause the flight until such time as a sufficient centrifugal force is developed to maintain the lock.

I claim: a

1. A helicopter comprising a propeller, a casing carried by said propeller, a parachute in said casing and attached thereto, and means actuatable under the influence of centrifugal force for opening said casing to release said parachute.

2. In a parachute at a point in its flight where said propeller is still rotating, swivel means attaching said parachute to said propeller away from the rotational axis thereof whereby the ofi-center 10 force applied by said parachute dampens rotational forces remaining in said propeller.

3. In combination with an impulse driven helicopter propeller and a releasable parachute carried thereby, means operable by the centrifugal 15 force developed by said rotor to release said parachute after said propeller has started descent.

4. The method of releasing a parachute from a chamber in an impulse driven helicopter which comprises locking said chamber, mechanically 2o maintaining said lock during initial rotation until centrifugal force is developed to maintain the lock, and regulating the locking forces to release the parachute shortly after descent begins.

JOHN K. NORTHROP. 25

helicopter comprising a propeller 5 adapted to rise when rotated and to release a 

